There are several qualities that metals would have to have in order to be usable by is our post-apocalyptic paradise.

1) Common enough that no one has bothered to mine the small deposits or commonly used in civilization in a workable form.

2) Low melting temperature. With bellows, a kiln, and charcoal we can get a fire pretty damn hot…but not hot enough to melt steel. For that you really need coal.

3) Does not oxidize, or, alternatively, its oxidization is a good thing.

A couple of metals that could work:

Introduction

That we are approaching the collapse is largely beyond debate. It is unnecessary to give a detailed examination here of the factors by which the collapse may come about. My purpose, instead, is twofold:

1. To explore the form the collapse may take; that is, to speculate on what we will actually experience as global industrial civilization crumbles, and more importantly

2. To explore how we may hope to create and perpetuate egalitarianism in a state of civilizational collapse.

What to Expect

Jeff Vail has published an excellent new essay called, “The New Map: Terrorism in a Post-Cartesian World,” arguing that the era of the nation-state is now ending; the era of the rhizome network is beginning. This essay speaks to an argument that keeps cropping up over at IshCon, with many doubting “the collapse,” that is, doubting that there will be one, single, apocalyptic end to civilization. They claim that speaking of a “global civilization” may be the goal of globalization, but it is an unfulfilled goal–and speaking of it as if it were already achieved is naught but American hubris. They argue that there are many civilizations in the world, not one, and that we may be facing the collapse of this or that civilization individually–”a collapse”–but certainly not the end of all civilization in the world. After all, they say, isn’t “civilization” a matter of memes?

It was a bright, sunny day, as most days on Seahaven Island seemed to be. The storm had passed, leaving Truman Burbank near-dead but still alive. He was sailing farther out to sea than he had ever dared sail before; he was going to explore the lands that had previously been hidden from him.

And then… SMASH. There was nothing to crash into, and yet his sailboat had stopped. He stood and walked across the boat to see what had happened. All he saw was clear blue sky with white, puffy clouds. And he reached out and touched it.

Dave Pollard’s latest talks about “cellular organization,” beginning with a passing reference to Jon Husband’s Wirearchy. These ruminations remind me of Jeff Vail’s work with Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari’s conception of “rhizome.” Or Daniel Quinn’s understanding of a “tribe.” These are all different ways of expressing the same idea–the same idea that Diogenes and Jesus taught. It’s echoed in Organic Flash, in the open source movement, in wikis and even in the phenomenon of blogs. It is as old as humanity itself, and universal–because it’s hardwired directly into our brains. It is the rejection of hierarchy; it is an affirmation of humanity. What should we call it? Tribe? Band? Rhizome? Egalitarianism? Cellular organization? Wirearchy? Choose whatever appelation you like best; they are all synonyms. Perhaps the most descriptive would simply be, “freedom.”

The following is a story I told around the campfire at Anthropikon. Those who were there might notice that it has been changed slightly, this is due to the ever changing nature of the mind, the change in medium, and that I don’t remember exactly how I told the story.

In the World of Dreams limitations do not exist. Anything and everything is available to you for the imagining. A golden goblet of the sweetest tea is but a breath away. The colors are always full and vibrant. The sounds crisp and clear. And the smells full and pleasant. Here the Dreams of all creatures reside and are the Gods of Dreams. Here is where those who do not take care are tempted into entering, and, without the will to leave, are kept forever.

What do we want?
Peace!
When do we want it?
Eventually!

I am just returned from Washington, D.C., where I took part in this weekend’s massive protest-march against the war.

I have never been so amazed by the American left. The protest was organized by the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition and United for Peace and Justice. These groups amaze me. How is it possible to have the resources; the organizational capacity; and the grassroots support to put 200,000 people in the center of Washington and yet accomplish ABSOLUTELY NOTHING?

Q: What’s the difference between a government official and a convicted killer?
A: A conviction.

The night was cold, but the fire was hot. I pressed my filthy sandals against the edge of the fire pit, absorbing as much heat as I could and keeping it inside me with my zippered hoodie. Ben gave me a notebook and pen, and Jim brought me a ladder and a bright lantern, and I played secretary as everybody talked. I forget exactly what questions everyone was supposed to answer. I remember, “What can’t you not do?” The general gist of it built up to what everyone wanted from a tribe and what everyone had to offer one.

The good news is, Hurricane Rita is weakening. It’s down to a category III at the moment, and the eye wall is collapsing. Oil prices have dropped $2 already. Now for the bad news. Our relief at Rita’s weakening is almost certainly misplaced; it’s still a huge storm, doing an incredible amount of damage. An enormous amount of oil is already shut-in, and New Orleans is flooded again. Elsewhere in the world, even the Saudis are admitting that Iraq is dissolving, and Nigerian guerrillas are holding their country’s oil production hostage. Most of the sources I trust most tell me that global Peak Oil will be a fall 2005 event. I can’t help but think that all of this is the opening act. But then again, Toyota says that Katrina drove up hybrid sales, so it can’t be all bad, right? Right?

As we saw in the previous thesis, the division between our genus, Homo, and the Australopithecines occurred two million years ago, with H. habilis and his freakishly large brain. All primates have brain-to-body mass ratios that are much higher than normal, but the human ratio is remarkable even among primates. According to a study from the University of Liverpool, that disproportionately high brain-to-body mass ratio is determined by the size and complexity of their social groups.

Society has ever been the most powerful strategy that primates employ. We discussed the benefits of risk-sharing in the previous thesis, boiling down essentially to this example, using hunting: